Vampires Never Get Old - Zoraida Cordova Page 0,81
unlikely that you’ll win that way. You’re liable to get distracted or run out of blessings. My father said the Turner women are lucky, but he didn’t say they are infallible.”
“I have an ironclad focus when determined.”
“I’ve been known to prevent a lady or two from doing what she’s set her mind to.”
“How much champagne was required?” Bea teased.
J.B. laughed, and she loved its deep, warm sound.
She felt the pull again. That deep tug and a headache that punched its way into her temples. The warning.
“My father was in love with your mother, you know?” he said.
“I didn’t. Not until tonight.”
He continued: “He was her first love. Despite the rules. Despite the hate from both Barons and Eternal folk. Wanted to marry her, but she didn’t return to this Ward … or any others … after finding your father.”
“They could’ve never been together.”
“But they were for a long time.”
Mama’s secrets settled over her. She’d never imagined her with another partner outside of Daddy.
“Why would she even play around? Or come that close to death?” Her mama wasn’t a gambling woman. “He could’ve killed her. You all always pull folks toward the crossroads. It’s in your nature.” Bea’s stomach dropped as more questions added to the tornado of others within her. Mama had avoided all her detailed inquiries on the subject over the years, only giving them a single and sharp message—Stay away from the Shadow Barons!
“My father is very powerful. He has a lot of control.”
Bea crossed her arms, confident this shouldn’t take very long. She’d embarrass him and send him on his way. She circled the board and shot another disk into a pocket.
“Your turn again,” he said.
Her fingernail throbbed from the plucking of the disks. She paused to suck on it.
“Need to forfeit due to pain?”
She scoffed. “You wish.”
“Rather I want. I need to know if what my father said is true. He has a luck that all the Walkers dream of. That I want. He’s charmed—and I think it’s all because of your mother.”
“Maybe he’s lying. Maybe it’s all a bluff.”
“They may call him Smoke, but he doesn’t blow it. There’s something else.”
Bea leaned over the board again to study her next move. She wondered what a kiss with him might be like. She’d had many over the years, but never one so dangerous. A kiss with an enemy. A kiss that could kill. She thumped another disk, but the tug of his presence sent sharp pain through her. She missed the pocket this time and cringed.
She felt his big smile and scowled.
“My turn,” he said, flicking one of his Carrom chips into one of hers and landing two of his disks in opposite pockets. “Seems like we’re tied already.”
Bea grimaced. What would happen if she lost? Would she honor the wager? Her head said she should immediately return to the party. She was supposed to be mingling and meeting others, looking for someone who might turn out to be her eternal love. But her silly feet wouldn’t move. She’d fallen into a strange bubble with J.B.; an electrified tether kept her planted in her chair.
J.B. took a second turn and easily landed another piece in a pocket. “That’s three to two now.”
“The game is far from over, so I wouldn’t get cocky.”
He didn’t take his eyes off her as he sank every last piece with one flick of his finger.
She sat back, stunned. Her head spun with surprise.
“I won.” J.B.’s eyes twinkled with delight. “A bet is a bet. You owe me that wager.”
Just one kiss won’t do anything, she told herself. Her own curiosity chipping away at her fears.
“I won’t bite,” he said.
She laughed.
He shifted closer to her. “And I won’t pull.”
She’d never kissed a non-mortal before.
“Do you promise not to bite?” he whispered.
“Yes,” she replied.
“May I?” he asked, reaching for her.
The words hung between them like a series of fireworks ready to explode.
She nodded. His palms grazed the nape of her neck first. The feel of his skin on hers made her heart flutter. A tingle to his touch, a reminder of what it felt like before her heart stopped. Up close, Bea could see the rich tones of his brown skin. His eyes combed over her face, and she felt him taking in every detail. His heart thudded so loudly it was the only noise between them.
Looking at him was like discovering something new about the world she’d known so long.